The Church has intervened in my life

[Rachie]

I have long term health issues from one of my co-conditions that I have. Also, autism I am sure comes with its own potential complications as well.

I have been quite unwell with stomach issues over one month which has been on the mend progressively. It sure has improved since it first started and with my autism as well I I have to enterian that I have GI issues and I have been prescribed medication by my GP to help manage help it also.

I started getting headaches and other things that could not be explained. People have told me before to not use my cooker gas for heating. I feel I have had warnings that I didn’t act on. I just have had a few things going on.

I have had severe headaches for a few days and other issues.

I attended church today. I sat with my cooker on after. Straight away I could see that the smell was making me feel ill. I turned it off.

I contacted my rector and told her and she texted me and she me told urgently now call the Gas number. I believe that God was directing her words and it was also good advice. I could have easily not gone judging on my situation medically over the last few days.

I had a faint idea it needed checking and tomorrow someone from a gas company will be attending. It was not my plan to call anyone today. I have also lost my heating as well it seems and who would want to with this weather.

My cooker is now off and I will never use it again. I said to myself if I am still feeling unwell tomorrow I will get it checked out in hospital. The cooker has been written and signed and I have symptoms. This has been quite a testing period.

I am thankful for the intervention of the church today Anyone else saying that I wouldn't have taken it so seriously.

My parents’ are both away for 3 months and my conditions give me a priority. I don’t want put myself into that group in here.

I am thankful for the intervention of the church today.

My parents’ are both away for 3 months and my conditions give me a priority. I don’t want put myself into that group in here.

I am thankful for the intervention of the church today.
Thank you

 

[Rachie]

The gas man who attended gave me an electric cooker and electric heater to be getting on with. My radiators are not on anymore. You don't know what they are using these days gas or electric. I have got his paperwork for the person who will attend tomorrow now it is off.
Anyway, despite the cost I have to use the fan heater and it has made such a difference already.

 

[Mary Terry]

@Rachie - I'm so glad you asked for help at church about the possibility of your being poisoned with gas fumes. I don't know what country you're in but what you describe is really scary. Stay warm and safe, and let us know what the gas man says when he comes to inspect and fix anything that is broken.

 

[Boogs]

@Rachie, natural gas as used in the UK can have an effect on health including causing headaches. If in a small unventilated area the concentration of gas excludes oxygen though for that to happen you'd very likely find the smell pretty strong.
Some people may get negatively effected by mercaptan which is the chemical that gives gas it's smell (so leaks can be detected, natural gas itself is odourless).
Finally, in a badly ventilated area, the chemicals created when gas burns can also cause negative effects including headaches.

As for whether this is what's happening for you I couldn't know, but it sounds like moving to electric, would be a sensible thing to try.

By the way, you can buy little space heater cubes these days which are much better and cheaper to run than most fan heaters. I don't think they are terribly expensive and may be worth looking at if your radiators are not working.

Final thing to make sure of, is that if you have a gas boiler/water heater that it's properly tested (should be annual)_ and you should a have a carbon monoxide detector near it. Carbon monoxide poisoning is something that can give similar symptoms and needs to be taken seriously as it can very easily be fatal if you have a faulty boiler or other gas heater! Make sure of you do have your gas man check this and check you have a working monoxide detector.

 

[Rachie]

@Rachie - I'm so glad you asked for help at church about the possibility of your being poisoned with gas fumes. I don't know what country you're in but what you describe is really scary. Stay warm and safe, and let us know what the gas man says when he comes in inspect and fix anything that is broken.

Thank you so much. I have called 111 in the UK and they are sending an ambulance. I don't know what the outcome will be but certainly don't feel great with it. I may not get all my answers as I have a complicated health mix. I will though know if I have been affected by the monoxide. My head has been stuffy as well like my sinsues. I do have an diagnosed allergy. I have been clearing my sinuses a lot today. The gas company is due tomorrow, but it would be silly to delay getting checked out until they visited.
I cannot leave my key with a neighbour, I trust them but I don't want to. I don't want to give my code to my code to my keysafe.

 

[Ronald Zeeman]

Your head ach may have been due to carbon monoxide poisoning.

 

[Rachie]

Thank you everyone.
I was taken to hospital in the early hours. I arrived and my monoxide levels was tested and it was confirmed as not within levels and I was given a mask oxygen for several hours. I still have symptoms but am on the mend. I have had several things going on so it has been so confusing like with the GI and everything else. They have given me fluids as well.
With Autism and my sensory which is quite severe I find hospitals so difficult. I have had a bed and slept a few hours and have things with me to try and destract me.

The good news is that I should go home feeling better and hopefully good for Christmas.

 

[Alexej]

The good news is that I should go home feeling better and hopefully good for Christmas.

Great news. May you have a blessed Christmas

 

[Boogs]

So glad they've taken you in are are giving treatment. I know how horrible a hospital stay can be at the best of times, so hope you're home, safe and well soon.

And it does sound like you've had faulty gas appliances if they found monoxide levels in your blood, so it's good that's identified so can't re-occur. Nasty stuff!

 

[Ronald Zeeman]

Good luck. Up here we are required by law to have a carbon monoxide detector in our house along with fire detectors.

 

[Aspychata]

Thats amazing you finally were able to figure you needed hospitalization. You may have not survived this ordeal if you hadn't checked in with someone. Drink some yummy eggnog and rejoice in better health.

 

[FayetheAspie]

I am glad that you got help in time and are recovering.

 

[Rachie]

Thank you everyone.

I am home now. They wanted me to stay longer and did more bloods by veins and scans which I never got the result of before I left. I might be able to see it later on the NHS App. They confirmed for me that I had a positive reading on the inital carbon monoxide detector test so was given a treatment course for carbon monoxide posioniong. The treatment helped and I didn't have seemingly the most severe case and I am thankful for that but it really seemed to be affecting me which not good at all. It was good for me to get away from it to allow me to recover. I took a photo of me with the mask but it is not pleasant to post to the internet.

I had to sign myself out. They wanted to give attention to one of my other conditions that is not apart of my treatment plan anymore so just signed myself out. They wanted me to stay longer and I would may be have taken it but I had things to do around the house as well with the lead up to Christmas.

 

[Boogs]

Glad you're home and feeling better @Rachie, but don't let youself get ill because there's something needs attention. I know hospitals can be the worse of places, but don't ignore anything if you're feeling unwell in any way. Carbon Monoxide alone is a nasty poison, it's better to be safe than sorry if you still feel any bad effects.
Also, make sure you're keeping warm and fed as well as possible, as this will help you recover.

 

[Rachie]

Glad you're home and feeling better @Rachie, but don't let youself get ill because there's something needs attention. I know hospitals can be the worse of places, but don't ignore anything if you're feeling unwell in any way. Carbon Monoxide alone is a nasty poison, it's better to be safe than sorry if you still feel any bad effects.
Also, make sure you're keeping warm and fed as well as possible, as this will help you recover.

Thank you for your very wise words. For me yes it was very helpful to have the carbon monoxide issue treated and hiighlighted. I know that a discharge summary will come to my GP with my the other results so I can just wait for those.

The admission was also helpful to me to know what is going on with myself with other conditions so given a heads up now to treat those myself with care and attention.

 

[Rachie]

The topic has involved my overall health a bit which I didn't obviously start the start the post to discuss. It's good for me though as well.

It is not easy for anyone of us managing multiple things jn the world. I have an treatment plan defined which is just self management. So when something seems against iI I will be confused as well. The other bloods I never posted some. I didn't know what showed and just seen some crucial ones was missed I am getting bloods redone soon and on supplements for the potassium. Sitting in the not knowing in the community can do your head in as well when you don't feel right in the community.

 

[Boogs]

I would agree that looking at overall health can be quite beneficial at times. Also, I'd imagine that carbon monoxide poisoning will effect many parts of the body directly or indirectly; though I'm no medic it stands to reason, and also I'd imagine that with some co-morbidites it could have a bigger risk for some autistic people, and I'm pleased you were able to get help, and indeed help yourself too! Always good for our sense of independence, especially when that's a difficult area, to have made a positive action.

I'm afraid I know little or nothing about those test results, but some others here are probably able to make some sense of them. I imagine the lower haemoglobin would relate to the monoxide and if so ought to gradually go back to it's normal?

 

[Rachie]

Broogs thank you, I do wonder too about how long it may take for a full recovery from the monoxide posioning. I am getting there.
I would like to know what the venous aertial test for the posionning is as that result has not come in yet on the NHS App and may be my GP could it add it to my next blood form. The NHS at hospitals are really pressed now for everything but I am surpised the bloods from the 2nd day of the hospital have not come in yet. I felt internally inflamed as well.

 

[Boogs]

venous aertial test

As I'm not a professional or qualified healthcare worker of any sort, please only take anything I say as suggestion only!
From a quick search online, it appears this test is to determine the state of your blood flow, how well your heart and blood vessels etc are working in pumping blood around your body.

It uses ultrasound so is painless, but would need something more than a blood sample, so unless you had something like this when you were in the hospital then maybe it was not needed? Or maybe included in the app in case some other test result warranted calling you back in for an ultrasound blood flow scan?

I suspect they would be testing you for things that could show signs of any longer term problems from the carbon monoxide, as best I could make out I think if you're not severely poisoned at the time (i.e. you weren't found unconscious or anything as acutely severe) most people recover ok within days or a week or so.

You are obviously sensible enough not to ignore bad symptoms, and unless you start to feel ill in some way you're not used to as part of any conditions you have, I would expect you'd be feeling a bit better each day. If anything is lingering unduly, or you're not sure even but have concerns, it's better to check it with hospital/GP or equivalent, then you can be reassured there's nothing to worry about, or get treatment if there is anything that needs some.

But again - I'm no medic, and you shouldn't assume I'm correct about what I say when it comes to something serious like your health!
Always better safe than sorry if any doubts at all!

 

[Rachie]

Boogs thank you very much. I was feeling a bit overwhelmed with it all. I will try and find the result it seems for this is called carboxyhemoglobin. I am due to take a blood test tomorrow and I will add it in. It would be good for me to know. I will chase the hospital result for this test. I will hopefully find the xray results as well.
Thank you for the reassuring words.